Thread: Grass Fed Beef vs Grain fed

Grass Fed Beef – This type of beef is from cows that have been fed their normal diet consisting of grass. The only exception would be in winter where hay, root vegetables and silage are ok. Cows are termed ruminant animals, and have a really cool chamber in their stomach called a Rumen. Think of it as a big fermentation vat. This chamber is one of four chambers in the stomach that turns grass into high quality protein, and ensures a great Omega 3 to 6 ratio. This is all dependent on the PH of the rumen.

I cannot recommend “normal” store bought grain fed beef as these cows have been fed grain, and grain feeding depletes all of the things in the fat that make it healthy and magical – namely a perfect balance of Omega 3 to Omega 6 fats, and CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid). The unhealthy Omega 3 to 6 ratio that is heavily skewed toward Omega 6 is very inflammatory to your body, and is thought to increase chances of heart disease and overall bodily inflammation. The PH of the rumen is heavily affected by grain, greatly increasing acidity, thus completely throwing off Omega 3, CLA, and other levels.

In case you are wondering what exactly happens to the cow fed their unnatural diet, Eat Wild states “when fed an unnatural diet of grain, acidosis can result and lead to a condition called “rumenitis,” which is an inflammation of the wall of the rumen. Rumenitis then leads to liver abscesses as the rumen wall becomes ulcerated, bacteria are able to pass through the walls and enter the bloodstream. Ultimately, the bacteria are transported to the liver where they cause abscesses. From 15 to 30 percent of feedlot cattle have liver abscesses, hence the need for antibiotics and such.” Not pretty.

Going back to Omega-3s, they are most abundant in seafood, but they are also found in animals raised on pasture, usually there is anywhere from two-six times more Omega 3’s in grass-fed meats. The reason is simple. Omega-3s are formed in the chloroplasts of green leaves and algae. It’s interesting to me that sixty percent of the fatty acids in grass are actually omega-3s. Some of the more hardcore farmers I’ve spent time and talked to believe in basically eating nothing but grass fed beef and vegetables due to the fact that you can source all your nutrients from the chloroplast in the leaf. For ultimate longevity, maybe they’re right?

I’ve been asked about cows that have been “finished” on grain. When cattle are taken off omega-3 rich grass and shipped to a feedlot to be fattened on omega-3 poor grain, they begin losing their store of this beneficial fat as one would suspect. Each day that an animal spends in the feedlot, its supply of omega-3 is diminished. There are some great graphical representations and more detailed info on this process on the very informative websitewww.eatwild.com that I referenced above.

Enjoy your day!
Anzel
Puritysourcelabs.ru
Euro-Pharmacies.net

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Interesting. I purchased and moved onto a small ranch last year. We've got about 10 acres of pasture all irrigated and set up for cattle. We started out by renting it out to a family member for his older cows that were calving and getting too old for the high desert, had close to 20 out there at one point to help eat the pasture down it grew so fast.

We bought a steer from another family member last summer, ended up buying a handful of calves last fall most of which were born on our property from the older cows were had out there.

For the cows we butchered last year, they simply fed on grass/alfalfa mix of the pasture. Didn't fatten or grain them up on anything else. The meat was great and the few people we sold some to loved it as well. And these were mostly older cows.

I was thinking about graining up the 1 or 2 steers we'll be butchering this year. Even had a neighbor offer me some grain for free. But I'll probably reconsider now.

Great stuff again Anzel. I love me some grass fed beef. Funny, eating grains (other than oats) like I used to made me fat and feel like shit. Just wish grass fed beef wasn't so expensive like most all food that's really good for you.

I only get my beef through butcher shops where they are all fed alphalpha hey, which is rich for the meet. That is why shipping hay to Japan is so lucerative, they don't have their own resources...

Originally Posted by Xtreme4Life

Interesting. I purchased and moved onto a small ranch last year. We've got about 10 acres of pasture all irrigated and set up for cattle. We started out by renting it out to a family member for his older cows that were calving and getting too old for the high desert, had close to 20 out there at one point to help eat the pasture down it grew so fast.

We bought a steer from another family member last summer, ended up buying a handful of calves last fall most of which were born on our property from the older cows were had out there.

For the cows we butchered last year, they simply fed on grass/alfalfa mix of the pasture. Didn't fatten or grain them up on anything else. The meat was great and the few people we sold some to loved it as well. And these were mostly older cows.

I was thinking about graining up the 1 or 2 steers we'll be butchering this year. Even had a neighbor offer me some grain for free. But I'll probably reconsider now.

Well do your research and maybe grain those guys up and just see if there is a difference that you notice...
If you look the topic up there is lots of evidence supporting grass fed is better.

Oh and btw same concept for farm raised salmon (Atlantic salmon) they are fed some crap and it alters the omegas in their meat. In fact their meat doesn't turn naturally pink with their farm diet so they have to dye the fish pink!


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Originally Posted by EJR

Great stuff again Anzel. I love me some grass fed beef. Funny, eating grains (other than oats) like I used to made me fat and feel like shit. Just wish grass fed beef wasn't so expensive like most all food that's really good for you.

Yeah it's expensive alright. Sucks.

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I own a cattle ranch and still prefer grain fed beef. Taste test still verifying that grain fed beef flavor is better.....to each their own though, makes no difference to me. What gets me is the screwing people are getting paying for grass fed beef. It's about half as cheap to raise.....folks, grass is pretty much free, grain cost money. Im a rancher and don't approve of the cost people are getting charged for it. If I take a 1200lb steer to the sale that is just the correct size for butcher and I said he has nothing but grass.....my ass is getting docked big time. Why??? Because he wasn't finished out with grain. Rant over.

For taste definitely needs to be finished with grain

Well I'm not surprised! Anything that is healthier for you is way more expensive! Complete bullshit!
As far as taste goes ...I think it's more about toughness vs tenderness. Grass fed can be tough and it's easy to screw it up and overcook it and it is just too lean. That's the problem...not enough fat.
But as far as health is concerned grass fed gets an A or a B while grain fed gets a C or a D.



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